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(No Model.)

s. B. STINEQ MINING MACHINE.

No. 443,585. Patented Dec. 30,1890.

UNrrnD STATES Fries SAMUEL B. STINE, OF OSOEOLA MILLS, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR OF TlVO- TI-IIRDS TO GEORGE M. BRISBIN AND D. R. GOOD, BOTH OF SAME PLACE.

MINING-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 443,585, dated December 30, 18 90.

Application filed September 20, 1889. Serial No. 324,589. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL B. STINE, a resident of Osceola Mills, in the county of Clearfield and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Mining-Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clean-and exact description thereof.

Myinvention relates to mining machines IO that is, machines for undercutting the coal in mines-and has special reference to the running of such machines by electric or like power obtained from a motor in a separate car from the machine itself.

The object of my invention is to simplify the construct-ion of these mining-machines, so as to reduce as far as possible the number of parts contained therein, and to so construct such parts that they are relieved from great 20 strain and that liability of injury thereto is reduced, these being extremely desirable points in the construction of such machines,

as the machines are generally operated in low and narrow spaces and 'there is liability of the coal falling upon and crushing or injuring the machines unless stoutly built, while the machines are often subject to great and sudden strains, and are also liable to wear from the dust formed in the cutting of the coal.

To these ends myinvention comprises, gen

erally stated, a bed on which is mounted a grooved shaft extending longitudinallyof the bed, and a carriage traveling on the bed and carrying the cutting apparatus at the forward end, said carriage having at the rear end thereof a cross-shaft from which the cutting apparatus is driven, and the cross-shaft bein g driven bythe longitudinally-grooved shaft by worm-gearing, so that the power applied to the grooved shaft will act to operate the cutting apparatus at the forward end of the carriage.

It also comprises the mechanism for feed- 5 ing and receding the machine, having a rotary screw-bar on the traveling carriage,

" which screws through a nut at the forward end of the stationary bed, this rotary screwbar being driven by mechanism, as will hereinafterbe more fully set forth and claimed.

It also comprises certain other improvements, as hereinafter referred to.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will describe the same more fully, referring to the accompanying 5 5 drawings, in which Figure 1 is a top or plan View illustrating the same; and Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section on the line 2 2, Fig. 1.

Like letters of referenceindicate like parts in each of the figures.

My invention is illustrated in connection with a machine having a cutter-bar driven at the forward end by cog-gearing, such as illustrated in Letters Patent No. 356,699, granted to me January 25, 1887, this being animproved form of machine which has been found efficient for the purpose. The machine has the bed A, on which is mounted a sliding frame or carriage b,the bed as generallyconstructed having the two side bars, or, as they are termed, housings 0. At the forward end of the stationary bed is the bracket or bearing cl, and at the rear end thereof the bracket or hearing cl, and mounted in these bearings is the shaft 6, which is what is termed a grooved shaft-that is, having a groove extending throughout the length thereof, with which a feather may engage for the driving of the mechanism. This grooved shaft 6 carries at the rear end thereof the grooved pulley f, which pulley thus revolves on a horizontal axis, the power being transmitted to the mining-machine from the motor on a separate movable car through this pulley.

In order to direct the driving-rope to the pulley, no matter in what direction the rope may extend, I provide at the rear end of the bed A and on each side of the pulley f the guide-pulleys g and g, these pulleys being both loosely mounted on the same shaft and one pulley being above the other, so that in the driving of the machine the one pulley may run in opposite directions to the other and so accommodate itself to the direction of the travel of the rope. The pulleys are sup-' ported in bearin gs back of the pulley f, so that the driving-rope runs over the forward faces thereof, and may pass from these pulleys gg at an angle toward the motor driving the ma- I90 chine. These pulleys g and g may be made of single wooden cylinders, these being preferred, as the rope in some cases loads to the pulley fat a slight incline, and the guidepulleys will work better when so constructed. The sliding frame or traveling carriage Z1 has the side bars b, connected at the rear end by the bed-plate 7t, and the side bars are connected at intervals by braces, if necessary. Mounted at the forward end of the bars Z) are the cutter-bar t and the forward chainshaft 7;, which are mounted on suitable bearings and engaged with each other by means of the cog-pinions 7n, such as fully shown in said patent No. 356,699.

Mounted at the rear end of the machine in bearings Z, secured to the bed-plate h, is the cross-shaft or rear chain-shaft Z, power being transmitted from said rear chain-shaf t to the forward chain-shaft by chains 71: The cross-shaft Z extends below the grooved shaft 6, and it has thereon the worm-wheel m, which engages with the worm n on the grooved shaft (2, said worm a2 engaging with the grooved shaft by a feather. The power is thus transmitted from the pulley f through the grooved shaft e to the wormm, and to the cross-shaft I through theworm-wheel m, and thence by the chains 7.: and shaft 7.; to the cutter-bar atthe forward end of the machine. By extendingthe cross-shaft Z below the 1011- gitudinal driving-shaft c Iam enabled to place the cr0ss-shaft at the proper height for driving the chains and raise the longitudinal driving-shaft above the course of the chains while forming a compact machine, which is so low as to permit of handling and use in low spaces, an important factor in operating within coal-mines. The worm-gearing enr ployed is generally such as will reduce the speed of the cross-shaft to about one-fourth that of the longitudinal driving-shaft, this class of gearingthns providing for such re-. dnction of speed within a very limited space and enabling me to obtain great strength and power with minimum weight.

For the feeding and receding of the machine I employ a screw-bar p, which is carried by the sliding frame 13 and engages with a nut, 9', secured to the front housing cof the stationary bed. The screw-bar is rotated by power applied at the rear end thereof, and having thus the advantage that as the screwbar is drawn through the nut the strain upon the screw-bar in feeding forward is a draw ing strain instead of a pushing strain, and as the greatest strain upon the screw bar 1's in feeding the machine forward all liability of bending or injuring the screw-bar during the feeding of the machine forward in making the cut is overcome. The strain in receding is of course a pushing strain; but-it is not nearly so severe as the strain in feeding, and there is practically no liability of injury to the screw-bar therefrom.

In order to feed the machine forward, I employ a worm s on the cross-shaft I, this worm 8 engaging with a worm-wheel a, mounted loosely on the rear end of the screw-bar and engaging said screw-bar through the clutch t, operated by a suitable clutclrlever. (Not shown.)

For receding or drawing back the carriage I employ a sprocket-wheel a, connected to the grooved shaft 0 by means of a feather and traveling with the carriage Z), the sprocketwheel connected by the chains 162 with a sprocket-wheel it, mounted loosely on the rear end of the screw-bar p and back of the clutch I, so that the clutch t may be thrown into engagement with either the worm-wheel s or the sprocket-wheel '11 according to the direction in which the sliding carriage is to be fed. Instead of the sprocket-wheelsll/and a and chain 21 gear-wheelsmay of course be employed, according tothe direction in which the screw is to berotated in receding. Suitable bearings 1: for the worm n and the wheels u, which engage with the grooved shaft e, extend up from the bed-plate h, these hearings 1; being of proper construction tovholdithev worm and pinion in properline with the parts engaged thereby, as shown. As the mechanism of the sliding frame consists, practically,

of the cross-shaft and the worm mechanism. 9

connected therewith and the two sprockets u and a, it is evident that these parts can be drawn closely to each other, so that they occupy practically no room or space at the rear end of the machine, and it is found that by, so compacting and simplifying the meehan: ism I amemabled to obtain a longer or deeper cut in proportion to the length ofthe machine, increasing the length of the out of themachineabout one foOt in the,ordinarylengtlr of machine.

In the operation of the machine, powereis applied from a motor in a separate movable carriage or car .by means of a traveling rope;- belt to the pulley f of the grooved shaft 0, and through theworm it on this shaft e and the wornmvheel m on the cross-shaft Z a proper speed for driving the cntterbar may be imparted to the cross-shaftl and a high power be generated, which will insurethe op eration of the cuttcrbar, said worm andwormwheel reducing the speed to about the proper speed of the rotation of the cutter-bar. Infeeding the machine forward the clutch '6 is thrown into engagement with the worm-wheel s, so causing the rotationof the screw-bar 9; and screwing the same throughthe nut a, and thus forcing the sliding frame forward, in order to make the cut As soonas the eutis made, by reversing the clutch t it isthrown into engagement with the sprocket-wheel a which reverses the direction of movement of and imparts a much higher speedto the screwbar, so obtaining the necessary speed in drawing back the machine,

The parts are simple and few, there being in all but two gear-wheels, two worms, two I worm-gears, and two sprockets to provide for the running of the machine, and these being formed of sufficient strength to withstand practically all strain to Which they may be subjected. The cost of the machine can therefore be very materially reduced, and at the same time the weight of the machine can be reduced, so reducing the labor to the operators within the mine in shifting or handling the machine.

\Vhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a mining-machine, the combination of a stationary bed having a grooved powershaft mounted thereon and extending 1ongitudinally thereof, a carriage traveling on the bed and carrying the cutting apparatus at the forward end, a cross-shaft mounted atthe rear end of the carriage and provided with a worm-gear, power-connections between said mounted thereon and extending longitudinally thereof and a nut at the forward end of the bed, a carriage traveling on said bed and having a cross-shaft at the rear driven by said grooved shaft, and a screw-bar on the carriage engaging with the nut on the bed, and a worm and a worm-wheel connection between the cross-shaft and screw-bar, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

3. In a mining-machine, the combination of a stationary bed having a nut at the forward end thereof, a carriage traveling on the bed and having cutting apparatus at the forward end thereof, a screw-bar mounted on the carriage and independent of the cutting apparatus and engaging with the nut at the forward end of the bed, and gearing at the rear end of the screw-bar engaging with the driving mechanism, whereby said bar is caused to screw through the nut and so pull forward the carriage, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

In testimony whereof I, the said SAMUEL B. STINE, have hereunto set my hand.

SAMUEL B. STINE. \Vitnesses:

A. S. BOALIGH, JACOB RITZMAN. 

